Jan 11, 2013

A zesty chunky cheese dip with chunks of tomatoes, hot peppers, garlic, onions, lime juice, cilantro and spices. Get the chips ready, this stuff is good while it's hot!

Skinny queso, it sounds like an oxymoron, right? This is a perfect appetizer to serve for the Superbowl, I'm adding this one to the list.

I stumbled on this recipe on Slender Kitchen and curiosity got the best of me so I decided to try it out. To be honest, while I was cooking it I had my reservations. It wasn't until I scooped some up with my chips that I found myself going for more. Luckily I had a house full of people to help me dip away, and they all gave it a thumbs up.

I served it with Beanitos black bean chips, love them! You can use any light baked chip you desire. For those of you on Weight Watchers, 1/4 cup of this dip is only 3 points plus which is pretty good considering how much cheese is in here!

A few things to note: I personally thought this was best right after making, it was all cheesy and stringy. Later I microwaved the leftovers to see how it would re-heat and it was no longer stringy like it was when I first made it so this is definitely something you want to make and eat right away.

I had tried that recipe a few months ago and I actually thought it was pretty gross to be honest - but yours looks so much better than the original, I may have to try it again. What did you do differently?

Really? I only made minor tweaks, I used a Sargento which is a good cheddar, melts nicely. My husband who is not on a diet loved it, so did my cousin. I also liked the spice it had, and the lime. I did find it needed to be adjusted with salt.

Oh goody goody goody!!! You have no idea how happy this makes me! The velveeta queso was so craveworthy but so bad for you. I'm going to have to pass this off on my husband without telling it's a healthy version. We'll have to see what he says :)

I think my serving size is bigger, I measured it and got under 3 cups. I suppose if you add more vegetables you can stretch it to make more servings but I got 2 3/4 cups. I figure 1/4 cup dip per person, no one would eat less than that!

I'm going to try making this and then keeping in my mini-crock pot to keep warm during the party. There is no setting on the little crock pot, so I'm hoping it doesn't get too warm. If anyone tries something similar, please post the results.

Maybe it's my pregnant tummy but this doesn't look too yummy. :( I keep looking at it willing myself to want it but I just don't. Oh well...I'm sure my family would love it. Low fat queso..heck yes! They'll be all over it. Maybe I'll make it anyways and the baby will change his or her mind. ;) Thanks for sharing Gina!!!

Hi Gina,This looks delicious but I have 2 questions - ancho chili powder - I haven't been able to find it. Would I be able to substitute chipotle chili or regular chili powders?Also, no stores supply Rotel tomatoes and there are no other brands that have the tomatoes with chiles. Would you have an idea for a substitute? Salsa, maybe? Can't wait to try this. Thanks, as always!Meaghan

Gina can you tell me how hot/spicey this is please? I know that is relative to the person, but my husband and I don't like anything that taste "hot" so trying to figure out what we should sub or leave out. Thanks for posting this recipe. I do want to try it soon!....lin lbprich@bellsouth.net

This was very good! It was pretty spicy with 2 jalapeños. Next time ill use one. I also forgot ancho powder, so I used chipotle chili powder. I didn't care for the smokiness it added. But it was cheesy and delish! I can eat a bunch of it!

wowwww this looks soooo good!!!! Anything creamy and sort of cheesy sounds yummy right now, and what better way than to make it healthier without sacrificing the taste?! Great job with this recipe! I've never heard of Rotel tomatoes, so I'll have to check into that.

Oh my gosh this looks amazing! cheese dip for 3pp!?!?! I would totally make this to go to parties with so i can have something I know what it is and how to track it! YUMRead my story here: http://twotimestoomany.blogspot.com/

I made this for the game on Saturday night! It was hard to stick to a serving it was so good. I ended up adding more chili powder because I really didn't think it was very spicy once the peppers were cooked down. My fiance devoured almost the entire thing he loved it so much. We will definitely be making this again!

I made this for the game last sunday and put it right in the crockpot to bring to my neighbors house. I thought it was just as good a couple hours later as it was when it was first done. All the neighbors loved it!

CarolI am getting my Super Bowl Goodies Menu ready and I have enjoyed all the great recipes I have made so far. The Baked Potato Soup was sooooo good. My husband raved about it. Thank you for helping on slim down.

just made this this past Saturday for a small get together and my friend (who happens to be a 'skinny bitch' (jk!!) who avoids carbs, hates spicy food, and is a VERY picky eater) couldn't stop eating this and neither could my husband. My husband says he definitely wants this at the table at the next party.

I'm a big fan of your recipes (your chicken ropa vieja recipe has been distributed several times to different friends) and this one just hit it out of the ball park!! Thanks!

How much kick does this dip have? I am kind of a wimp with spice but still want to try it out for Superbowl Sunday. It looks and sounds amazing. What would be your suggestion to mellow it a bit so the kids would eat it as well? Thanks in advance!

YUMMY!! I made this for the Super Bowl and everyone loved it! Noone had a clue it was lowfat. I have lost 2 lbs last week making your recipes and desserts! Thank you for the light alterations. I have not told my family the recipes are lowfat and healthier or they wont touch it. What they don't know - Won't hurt them!!:)

Maybe this is more of a comment about my love affair with cheese, but I did not think this tasted cheesy at all. I love queso dip, it's one of my favorite foods. Every other recipe I've tried from Gina has been over-the-top excellente, but this one I threw out. I made it to take to a get together and just could not bring myself to serve it. And yes, I did follow all the directions and used Sargento cheese, I even tried throwing a little bit more cheese in there and it still didn't taste like cheese. Just onions, jalapenos, garlic and Rotel in a pillowy mush.

Made this and it took some serious chopping work! It was good though. Next time I will use less cilantro. It seemed to overwhelm the dish. Also, only used 1 jalapeno and glad I did, it was awfully chunky. I think the leftovers will be great on nachos. All in all a delicious dish.

hmm, sounds like it'd be good with ground turkey! I like the idea of eating with celery, which I love. maybe also good poured over chicken breast? adding to next weeks recipe list, but I may just make it this weekend for a Sunday snack!

This is my first time on this site, and the recipes look great. I was looking under the vegetarian dishes for a dip for my vegetarian sister and found this recipe, but then saw it has chicken broth in it. Maybe I can substitute veggie broth.

make sure you use good cheese...the Sargento will be what I suggest and use next time. I used a generic brand and this recipe did NOT work out. I also used the crock pot and FAILED! But alas, I am NOT giving up on it. I'm going to try again for today's game.Shelly

There is a foot of snow (and counting) outside my door right now so a perfect day for this dip. I followed the recipe exactly and used a really good New York cheddar. The cilantro and lime juice add great flavor. Delicious!